Allentown's Crocodile Rock loses liquor license

Crocodile Rock lost its liquor license last month after a lengthy dispute with the state Liquor Control Board over a shooting outside the club in 2009, owner Joe Clark said.

Crocodile Rock lost its liquor license last month after a lengthy dispute with the state Liquor Control Board over a shooting outside the club in 2009, owner Joe Clark said. (DOUGLAS KILPATRICK, SPECIAL TO THE MORNING CALL)

Emily Opilo, Of The Morning Call

Thirsty concert-goers looking for a cold one at the Crocodile Rock Café will have to settle for a bottle of water.

The downtown Allentown club, ranked among the top 100 concert venues in the nation, lost its liquor license last month after a lengthy dispute with the state Liquor Control Board over a shooting outside the club in 2009, owner Joe Clark said.

A 23-year-old man and 19-year-old woman were wounded when someone fired into a crowd leaving a rap concert at the club in the 500 block of Hamilton Street.

In response to the shooting and other incidents, the LCB asked Crocodile Rock to bolster security outside the club with outdoor surveillance cameras, Clark said. The cameras were ordered, but when they arrived, they were the wrong model, Clark said. They were never installed.

LCB records show that Crocodile Rock's license is inactive. Spokeswoman Stacy Kriedeman said the board's Bureau of Licensing objected to a license renewal in 2010 on the grounds that the club is a nuisance bar. Crocodile Rock appealed and was permitted to continue serving alcohol until Lehigh County President Judge Carol K. McGinley upheld the denial in January.

Clark, who is appealing the case, said he takes responsibility for failing to install outdoor cameras. But the license shouldn't have been revoked, he said.

According to Clark, alcohol sales were only a small portion of his annual revenue. Ticket sales generate the most money, he said.

Crocodile Rock has always attracted a lot of "kiddie shows," catering to the underage set, Clark said. Until the license can be restored, the club will focus on those acts.

Clark said he had already bought several extra pallets of bottled water and plans to open a juice bar.

"I'd rather sell someone a bottle of water than a bottle of beer any day," Clark said. "It has more shelf life, and I'm not liable, and the profit margin is bigger."

But according to one regional promoter, Crocodile Rock could be in jeopardy of losing its status as one of the Lehigh Valley's top venues. In 2012, it was ranked the 99th largest venue in the nation after selling 33,212 tickets. In 2011, the club was 60th with 50,294 tickets.

Stan Levinstone, president of SLP Concerts of New Jersey and one of Crocodile Rock's primary promoters, said it doesn't pay to book shows in Pennsylvania that don't offer alcohol. Even at shows for the under-21 crowd, there are always a few older adults who want to drink, he said.

Liquor sales help cover the expenses of booking an act, Levinstone said.

"It's definitely going to make me think twice about putting stuff in there," he said, although Crocodile Rock has SLP shows booked at least into March, according to SLP's website. "Losing that residual income is not a good thing."

The decision not to renew the license was unfortunate timing, Levinstone said. With the arena project being built down the street, Crocodile Rock would have become an even more attractive venue.

The club is also in the city's Neighborhood Improvement Zone, a one-of-a-kind state-supported area that allows developers to tap tenants' state and city taxes, not including property taxes, to finance construction.

"Allentown has become a place where touring bands play," Levinstone said. "This is definitely not a good thing for the business."

Clark disagreed. With no need to separate drinking and underage patrons, the barricade in the middle of the club can be torn down, and the venue will actually be more attractive to younger patrons, he said.

So far, going dry hasn't hurt business, Clark said. Several shows have been booked since the decision, he said.

And just in case, Clark has a backup plan.

In the next 30 days, he'll open a discount furniture store at Crocodile Rock. The name: Crazy Joe's Discount Furniture. He also has plans for a club in New Jersey, right across the border.

"I just happen to be funded now in my later years," Clark said. "We can do anything."